• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

Is $440 million per year for military music a good buy?

I'm perfectly fine with military bands, and all that, but I was not aware there are so many. I do feel we should cut those numbers probably in half.

Keep in mind that all military bands don't have huge numbers of people. There are all types of military bands. There is even a couple of rock n roll groups in that mix.
 
Another program, the variety shows, have already faced the axe big time. This is where regular soldiers would take 6 months or a year off from soldiering to travel around giving shows, mostly on bases. I think they were free to attend, I never went to one but they came every year to Ft Lewis. There never seem to be much excitement about these either from what I could see, I was for years an FRG leader, I talked to family members constantly.

But the winds of fiscal austerity surging through the Defense Department, as well as new spending priorities, have led to plans to shut down many of the military's best-known music and entertainment programs.
On Friday, Tops In Blue, the Air Force's renowned traveling entertainment show consisting of active duty airmen, played its last show at Mascoutah High School.
After that, it goes on indefinite hiatus while the Air Force evaluates whether the performance troupe of musicians, vocalists, dancers and other entertainers is worth an annual cost of between $3 million and $10 million, depending on how one calculates performer salaries, food, lodging, transportation costs and other support costs.
No cutbacks have been planned for The Band of Mid-America, based at Scott Air Force Base, according to a spokesman for the Air Mobility Command, which sponsors the ensemble.
However, the Army announced last week that the Army Soldier Show, its counterpart to Tops In Blue, would be canceled immediately. No explanation was given for the termination of the Broadway-styled show that had played to large crowds around the world since 1983. The cancellation notice occurred just a month after dozens of active-duty, reserve and national guard personnel journeyed to Joint Base San Antonio to try out for the show during auditions Dec. 18.
Pentagon Playing 'Taps' for Military Bands and Entertainment Shows | Military.com

Other Army units are also seeing their bands disappearing. The Army announced last month that the 40-member 392nd Army Band, in Fort Lee, Va., will be reduced to a dozen soldiers in 2016 as part of the Army's overall budget cuts.
Warrant Officer Kevin L. Pick, the band director, told the local Progress-Index newspaper that the band, once an integral part of the community and on track to play 500 dates between 2015 and 2016, will end. "It will be a shock," Pick said.
All told, nearly 200 Army band member positions are being eliminated Army-wide, with cuts planned for the the U.S. Army Signal Corps Band based at Fort Gordon, Ga.; The 98th Army "Silver Wings" Band based at Fort Rucker, Ala.; and the 113th Army Band based at Fort Knox, Ky., the Army has announced.

one gets the sense the bands have not been shrinking as much as the overall force. Someone should find out.
 
Back
Top Bottom